Moe Bandy / Stampley Joe Moe & Joe: The Ultimate Hits Collection CD

Though it's barely half an hour long, The Ultimate Moe & Joe compiles all the singles by one of the hottest country duos of the '80s into one absolutely outrageous, indispensable package that need not be one second longer. Moe Bandy & Joe Stampley used a Hee Haw satire aesthetic and got some of the hottest country songwriters to pen redneck anthems for them -- including Boudleaux Bryant with the duo's "Hey Joe (Hey Moe)" Cajun-dipped theme. It all began as a one-off with Ray Baker, Moe Bandy's producer, as the duo recorded a version of Johnny Horton's "Honky Tonk Man," and the formula worked so well that the pair's albums and singles never left the Top Ten. They disbanded amicably and perform together on occasion to this day. Here is the evidence: the first honky tonk drag queen anthem, "Honky Tonk Queen," Ansley Fleetwood's "Just Good Ol' Boys," which blared out of frat house speakers all over the South and Texas in the '80s, and the amazing anthem "Let's Hear It for the Workin' Man," which George Bush would do well to listen to. In addition, "Country Boys" and "Holding the Bag" round out what is indeed a flawless collection. ~ Thom Jurek

Live Recording

Recorded between 1979 & 1985.

Personnel: Moe Bandy, Joe Stampley (vocals); Chip Young, Tommy Allsup, Jimmy Capps, Phil Baugh, Henry Strelecki, Dave Kirby, Ray Edenton, Billy Sanford (guitar); Weldon Myrick, Leo Jackson, Buddy Emmons (steel guitar); Johnny Gimble, Pete Wade (fiddle); Charlie McCoy, Terry McMillan (harmonica); Bob Moore, Mike Leech, John Komrada (bass); Kenny Malone, Hayward Bishop (drums); The Jordanaires.